Are you looking for new ways to renew your soul? Sometimes we can get in a rut and spiritual practices that have worked so well for us in the past don't seem to be as helpful. In order to be healthy pastors and leaders as well as women living in the freedom of Christ, we should be growing closer to the Lord each and every day. While there is nothing "magical" about a spiritual practice per se, trying a new spiritual discipline, even one that may be a bit uncomfortable, is a great way to stay connected with Jesus and learn to hear Him and See Him in fresh new ways.

In this episode, I share 4 spiritual disciplines you can use to help you renew your soul and grow closer to God. Here are the spiritual disciplines we cover:

EXAMEN

SILENCE AND SOLITUDE

MEMORIZING SCRIPTURE

PRAYING A PSALM IN NATURE

Questions to Consider for EXAMEN

• Where did you sense God and His presence?
• How were you loved by God today?
• Where did you not feel God present?
• In what part of your day was...

You know you want to create margin and integrate healthy rhythms into your life and leadership but where do you start? What are some ideas of practical things you can put into place. In this episode I’m going to share with you some ideas for margin to help you get started.

I was leading a workshop on making margin at a women's clergy conference and someone raised their hand and said...I know that this is going to be different for each of us, but what are some practical examples of what margin could look like in our lives? Where do we start?

I loved this question! Yes, the type of margin we need will be different for each of us. In fact, it will shift and change in our own lives as we live and lead through different seasons. But there are some ways you can begin. And in this episode I share how you can get started.

Ideas for Making Margin in Life and Leadership

• Sabbath
• Starts and Finishes
• Movement and Meals
• Add in Fun

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Is the way you’re living and leading making you more than just tired? As you think about your weariness, does it feel like you are carrying the weight of so many expectations? Are you faced with following the rules for life and leadership that someone else has set for you?

If you are, you are not alone. Jesus has an invitation just for you and I have a question I want you to ask you to consider. I’ve got to warn you…it may be a bit uncomfortable. But in your wrestling, I believe God will reveal the truth…and as Jesus says, the truth will set you free.

You Are Invited

Jesus offers us a wonderful invitation in Matthew 11:28-30. He says:

"Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."

Many of us wonder...

...Could...

Have you lost your energy? Is it harder to get things done? Do you struggle focusing on others and showing empathy? We all go through seasons of pouring ourselves out, but how do you know when you’ve more than just tired? In this episode, I am going to unpack my working definition of burnout and share a few signs that might indicate there’s more going on than just you being tired.

Working Definition of Burnout

"Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. It occurs when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet constant demands. As the stress continues, you begin to lose the interest and motivation that led you to take on a certain role in the first place.”

Here are some signs that you are more than tired:

• Anger
• Bitterness, resentment
• Blaming everyone else for why you’re struggling
• Don’t really care about the outcomes…(different than caring but...

Do you feel far from God? Is it hard to hear Him? Do you struggle to see the ways He is working around you? When we feel far from God it plays a role in our soul health. And when we feel depleted, worried, even alone, it impacts the way we relate to God and others.

In this episode, I'm sharing a call that I recently had with a group of women taking the Margin Maker Workshop. We just completed the first session, "Getting Ready for Change" where we asked the question, "How's your soul?" In this conversation we talked about how we might be feeling and what assurances we can take with us on the journey to wholeness in our relationship with God and margin in life and ministry.

Scriptures Referenced

• Isaiah 53:6
• Psalm 25:8
• Psalm 23

If you'd like to join me for our next Margin Maker Workshop in a few months, you can get on the waitlist HERE. Or, if you're not quite sure what your next step should be but you know you need to make a change, let's have a discovery call....

You are loved by God. Not because you are in ministry. Not because you said yes to leadership. Not because you are compassionate. It is not because of anything you have ever done or will ever do. It is because of who God is.

As the song Jireh, says: You have never been more loved than you are right now. God loved you and chose you because it gave Him great pleasure to do it!

Many of us struggle to anchor ourselves fully in the complete love of God. We worry about disappointing Him. We want to make Him so glad that He chose us. He does choose you and He would do it over and over again because He is love. And His love and acceptance has nothing to do with your ministry.

If you struggle with the idea that you are loved by God apart from ministry, this episode is for you.

Scriptures Referenced

Ephesians 1:4-5

Ephesians 2:1-6

Romans 5:8

Romans 7:22

Isaiah 30:15-18 (verse 18 in the Amplified Version)

Isaiah 43:4

YOUR AFFIRMATION

If this was for you, let me know! Send me at...

Are you feeling marginalized as a woman in ministry? Is your contribution and leadership not valued? Are your ideas ignored? This is a common challenge that many women face, even in denominations and churches that say they welcome women in ministry.

If you haven’t experienced this, I’m thankful and I would encourage you to listen to this episode because I am willing to guarantee there is someone you know who has, even if they are in a denomination or church that embraces an egalitarian model of ministry.

Boundaries are intricately tied to the challenges of being a woman in ministry.

If we aren’t careful we over extend ourselves. We will try to prove them wrong if they question our leadership. We will over compensate and do more. We won’t stop because we are afraid that we’ll be judged or we won’t be seen. And we can spend endless amounts of time and energy trying to fight and make our case for why we belong in ministry. We...

Do you have everything you need for ministry?

Many of us feel like we don't have everything we need in order to do ministry. We often think, if we just had:

• more tools more programs,
• people attending
• more engagement
• more resources
• more education and training
• more time
• more energy
• more ideas
• more help

...then we would be able to make some progress!

What if I told you that you have everything that you need? That's right, everything is available to you in order for you to share Jesus and build the Kingdom. Would you believe me?

If you are feeling discouraged, if you feel like you just don't have enough, then this episode is for you!

Scripture from Ephesians 1:15-23

Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of...

Are you busy in ministry?  Is it ok to be busy in ministry?

I will admit that there was a time when I didn’t think it was ok to be busy and I’m now rethinking this idea. I think it depends on what we mean when we say “busy.”

Here are some definitions of busy:

• activity or fully engaged or occupied
• Crowded with or characterized by much activity
• Constant at work, diligent; active.

My friend Amber doesn’t use the word busy. She substitutes the word busy with productive. For her, busyness means a time of increased productivity.

So, if we think about those definitions and concepts of busy there is really nothing wrong with being fully engaged, productive, diligent, and active. Jesus was all of those things. He was active in the work God gave Him. He was focused. There isn’t anything wrong with having seasons where there is a lot to do. Even seasons where you might have to make adjustments for the short term...

"Margin is the space between our load and our limits." -Dr. Swenson

We all need margin. We were built for it. We need margin from things like being in change, constant activity, overwork, noise, running around, the news, and social media.

We also need margin set aside for things like rest, relationships, play, silence, God, eating uninterrupted, processing our feelings, and moving our bodies.

We want margin but sometimes we struggle to make it a reality in life and ministry. Here are some reasons why.

4 Mistakes Ministry Leaders Make When Creating Margin 

They don’t have a vision. They know they can’t keep doing it the same way but they don’t know what they want and if you don’t know the target, you’ll miss it every time.  

They rarely evaluate. They rarely reflect and see if they are living into that vision. Did they honor the commitments they made to the things that mattered most? Did They spend their time the way...